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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · rock · pit · capital · wave · degree · lie · court

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. season — in sport
  4. degree — temperature
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. court — of law
  9. pit — a hole
  10. season — of the year
  11. pit — in a race
  12. rock — music
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — an amount
  16. court — of a king
  17. rock — a stone
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. court — for sport
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. wave — a sudden rise

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com